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The potent allergen that’s soaking into millions of graying heads

About seven years ago, Terri Domsky feared she had to choose between not dyeing her gray hair or dying.

Taking a slug of Benadryl was no longer enough to combat the itchy red scalp that followed a trip to the hair salon.

“One day,” recalled the 54-year-old Queen Village resident, “I left the hairdresser, and my hands and feet swelled. The base of my neck swelled. I had rashes. It scared the crap out of me. I went to a dermatologist who gave me steroids. Basically, he advised me that I had a PPD allergy and I could develop anaphylactic shock and die.”